GAMBIER, Ohio -- The third-seeded Big Red men's tennis team dropped a 5-1 decision to second-seeded and 28th-ranked Kenyon College on Saturday in the semifinal round of the 2017 North Coast Athletic Conference Championship Tournament.

The Lords held a 2-1 lead in the match after doubles despite two closely contested flights. Kenyon was victorious in at the second flight via 8-2 score.  Denison evened the score when Danish Siddiquie and Colin Bahin doubled up Tristan Kaye and Mike Roberts at No. 3 doubles, 8-4.

In the closest doubles flight of the match, Alex Rieger and Weston Noall edged DU's top pairing of Kevin Brown and Blake Burstein, 8-6, to regain a one-point lead. Kenyon went on to win the third, fourth and sixth singles flights to secure the 5-1 decision.

With the win, the Lords (12-10) earned a spot in the 2017 NCAC Tournament Championship match where they will take on top-seeded DePauw. The Tigers earned their berth into the title match with a hard-fought 5-3 win over fourth-seeded Oberlin. The Big Red (9-10) will face the Yeomen in the third-place match on Sunday at 12 p.m. in Gambier, Ohio.